Katie Zornes is on an ultra-journey to become healthier, both mentally and physically.  She has struggled with depression her entire life and struggled with weight most of her life. After a mental crumble in 2021 she has slowly crawled out of that dark space by having the courage to do one hard thing at a time and document her journey on her website and Instagram.

This one is sure to inspire you! Katie takes us through her mental and physical struggles and how she is taking hold of those hard moments and moving forward. Katie discusses how she believed the key to happiness was weight loss and how that impacted her mental health. We talk about doing 22 hard things in 2022 and what is on the list for 2023. Katie is a beautiful person who is using her voice and actions to inspire others.

Instagram @tri_ing_to_live

Website: katiezornes.com

We had the chance to talk to Luke Tuttle of Ultra Running Destinations.  He uses the site to review trails and events all over the world. On this episode we got to talk about some of the amazing locales and adventures Luke has been on and we get to learn more about his story. If you like running and travel, you'll love this episode.. Thanks for listening!

Devon Yanko is an accomplished ultra-runner with some impressive wins including most recently, Javelina 100. She is also ranked #6 female ultrarunner of the year by Ultrarunning magazine. There is much more to know about Devon. 

We had a lot of fun talking to Devon. We talked about the challenges she faces since being diagnosed with Lupas. She shares how self-care has changed and how she finds balance. We discuss her recent Javelina win and what is next. We also talk about her labor of love, Women of Distance Podcast. We loved everything about this conversation!

IG - @fastfoodie

Today Scott and Delorean got to catch up a bit.  It is obvious how much this family is going through so reminding Delorean that perfection is NOT the goal seemed to be a big part of today's call.  That, and youth sports! We know so many of you are going through tough stuff and Delorean and his family are just more proof of what is possible and why it's so important to keep pushing to get stronger for yourself and your loved ones.  We hope you enjoy the show!

Hillary is back to coach up Stacey and Isabel.  Isabel ditched the socks on a long run recently.  Stacey is enjoying the Oregon trails.  Both women look to events to get some longer efforts in and prep for the upcoming race!  Enjoy the show!

Lindsey McElroy Ulrich lives for adventures, trails, and mountains. She is not only a fierce trail runner but also a 10-year stroke survivor and busy mom. She went from barely being able to walk to crushing down barriers and living her best life. She lives her life full of gratitude for every day.

Most people can’t imagine running the distances Lindsey has. The fact that she became an ultra-runner after having a stroke and losing her ability to walk is even more remarkable. On this podcast Lindsey shares her remarkable story from a place of gratitude. She has had some amazing adventures from the Marathon Des Sables to nine days on the PCT. She knows no limits and her motto is never give up on yourself. You will rethink what is possible for you after listening to her story.

IG - @lindsruns

With only 2 months before the Wy'east Wonder race in Oregon, Coach Amanda Basham catches up with her athletes. We follow the journey of ultra runners and shares their coaching calls with the world!

Annie catches up with Jasmine and Darin and the fact that there is no big news is great news!  Both runners are seeing huge improvement with their fitness which is amazing. We talk about a recent Instagram post Annie shared about running being the olnly sport she ever excelled at and loved.  Pretty cool.  Enjoy the show.

Fresh off her Boston Marathon finish our own Carly shares her experience. She has dreamed of qualifying for and running Boston since her early marathon days. This is a fun episode you don’t want to miss!

If running is good for anything, helping us deal with real life stuff that isn't fun or easy might be the the most important thing we gain from it all.  Delorean and Mandy head to Texas to look for better treatment options.  T/he running took a back seat but it had to.  Delorean will just get back at it the next week. The optimism and love in this family is awesome to see.  We also share a fundraiser for the rare cancer where Delorean will teach us all how to cook his signature dish. You can learn more here.  Hope you enjoy!

Monica Soileau with the help of her amazing crew recently finished the Badger Mountain Challenge 100 Miler. This race has over 17,000 feet of elevation gain. Of the 127 registered, 65 finished. We love to feature our fellow Team BU people when they accomplish hard things. Monica couldn’t share her story without her incredible crew being a part of it. When people pull together to help someone accomplish their goals everyone wins. This is a fun one!

Isabel and Stacey have been pushing their training and it is all paying off.  A long uphill goal of not walking was met by Isabel and she notices some positives of running with other people. Stacey tests her legs with lots of vert on her long run this week!  Enjoy the show and following along!

Kristi and Kelsey are continuing to put the work in for their big goals.  Kristi is on her feet a bunch dancing for a production of Spamalot so Coach Basham pulls back her volume a bit to match.  Kelsey has a brutal long run and they refocus on the fueling.  Enjoy the show!

Coach Annie Hughes is fresh off her win in the desert around Moab as she helps get Jasmine and Darin closer and closer to their goals of the 50k and 50 miler this coming June.  Jasmine ran her first sanctioned 50k in Oregon and shares her experience running the Pacific Northwest for the first time.  Darin feels the training take hold as he runs a PR for the 5k.  Things are looking great for this crew!

John Kelly is a husband, father of four, ultra-runner, and explorer. He has a PhD in electrical engineering and is the tech co-founder at Envelop Risk Analytics. He is also part of an elite group of people to have finished the Barkley Marathons. One of only 17 people to have finished and one of three people to finish more than once. 

In this conversation we discuss what it takes to succeed at the Barkley Marathons, how the BM has evolved for John over the years, training and preparing for it, and why Laz has made changes over the years. We also talk about John’s amazing Hard Rock finish. John also shares how he balances family, training, and his career. He has an incredible mental toughness and positive mindset and looks forward to hard challenges. This one is sure to inspire you to do that hard thing.

www.randomforestrunner.com

IG- @randomforestrunner

Join Scott and Ian Sharman as they talk about all things running, coaching, training, and more.  Ian owns Sharman Ultra, a long time partner of Becoming Ultra.  They get to talking about the business of online coaching and where they see it going in the near future.  They talk about some races that don't get enough love and bounce around the running world to share some of their experiences. Enjoy the show!

Lauren Jones is the founder of Life’s 2 Short Fitness. She has a passion to educate, encourage, and empower women through her many retreats. Lauren is one of the most positive and encouraging women we have ever met. We have had the pleasure of sharing trail miles with her and experiencing it firsthand. She has her own story of struggles to share. We discuss that and the power of staying positive and never giving up on your goals. Lauren believes you don’t know your limits until you push past them.  This conversation is full of inspiration. Hopefully you will be encouraged to step out of your comfort zone and have an amazing adventure.

IG - @lifes2shortfitness

www.lifes2shortfitness.com

Running is rarely ever the main thing when it comes to ultra running and the people who toe the line. Delorean is a great example of keeping himself strong and ready to be there for his awesome family.  We hope you enjoy their story and finds ways to support them all. 

As we continue to follow Darin and jasmin as they prep for their first 50k and 50 miler we talk mindset on long uphill efforts, mentality in going to run a 50k around people when training is usually solo, and what to do when unruly customers try to ruin your day!  Enjoy the show!

Jeff Browning (aka Bronco Billy) is a veteran ultra-runner and endurance coach. He has competed in some of the world’s most difficult ultra-mountain races over the past two decades, amassing nearly 200 ultra-marathon finishes and 39 career ultra-wins. Of those, 27 were in the 100-mile plus distance, placing him second in the world for the most 100-mile wins in history. He holds multiple course records, including Moab 240 and The double record for the fastest combined times of Western States 100 and Hardrock 100 (a mere 19 days apart). He was ranked No. 3 in Ultrarunning Magazine’s North American Ultrarunner of the Decade (2010-2019) and has been ranked seven times in the Top Ten of Ultrarunning Magazine’s North American Ultrarunner of the Year – the first and only man over 50 to make the list. He lives and trains in Flagstaff, Arizona with his wife and three children. 

We really enjoyed this conversation with Jeff. This guy has been doing Ultras for a long time and is full of knowledge and wisdom. We covered so many topics on this one. Jeff talks about how embracing the process of training has kept him motivated. He also talks about nutrition and how that has made the biggest impact on his performance. We also talk about balancing family, career, training, and coaching. We even got into a fun discussion about music. Jeff’s words of encouragement are some of our favorite. We know you will enjoy this conversation as much as we did.

IG- @gobroncobilly

Coaching - www.gobroncobilly.com

Dave & Jenn Goins are no strangers to ultra-marathons. They were Becoming Ultras first married couple selected as part of season 10 and they have not stopped taking on challenges. In February they ran their first ultra-together, Black Canyon 100K. On this podcast they talk about the highs and lows and how they got each other through it.  We love to see couples supporting each other.

We are almost at the halfway point for season 13 and the runners are getting it done and learning along the way.  Learning how to get training in when travel is imminent and learning what running on trails feels like after a long winter. Hillary was traveling too and shares a little about her time in Spain.  Enjoy the show!

Kristi and Kelsey had some good questions for coach Basham.  Their training is right on schedule for the big day in June.  Becoming Ultra is all about following the journey of ultra runners!

Coach Annie Hughes catches up with Jasmine and Darin as they prepare for the 50k and 50 mile run in Oregon. Darin ran into his first snake of the season in Arizona and Jasmine gets ready for a 50k in Oregon soon. Becoming Ultra follows the journey of ultra runners!

Riley Brady is a 27-year-old trail runner and bicycle mechanic, who recently moved to Boulder, Colorado. They are spending the next few months focusing on running but eventually hopes to move into the frame building side of the bike world. Outside of running and work Riley loves goofing around with friends and internet cat videos.

Riley is living their best life! We had a great time chatting with them. Their positive energy is contagious. We covered so many topics on this one. Riley discusses their Javelina 100 race that earned a Golden Ticket as well as being name one of the top ranked ultra-runners by Ultra Runner Magazine. We also discussed being a non-binary athlete and inclusion in ultra-running. Riley shares some DNF experiences and how they view them. This was one of our favorite conversations. I hope you listen with an open mind and open heart.  

IG - @rye.outside